Rotoworld’s brand-new Pickups of the Day column is designed to help fantasy managers uncover a handful of widely-available targets over the course of the season. It could be a breakout candidate, a prospect stash, an injury replacement, a pitcher with a favorable matchup or week, a player who is due some better luck, or any other number of scenarios. If there’s value to be found on the waiver wire, we will find it and bring it your way. Today’s edition features the emergence of a righty-mashing corner outfielder in Miami and the highly-anticipated arrival of a top pitching prospect in Cincinnati.
Jesús Sánchez, OF, Marlins
Available in 95 percent of Yahoo leagues
The post-hype prospect label gets thrown around quite liberally in the prospect proliferation era, but it seems to fit quite nicely with Sánchez, who was an exciting toolsy athletic prospect with persistent contact issues that never quite put it together at the highest level over the past three seasons since being promoted to the majors during the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign. The 25-year-old corner outfielder missed two weeks back in late-May due to a right hamstring strain, but has gone hit .353 (6-for-17) with one homer, two RBI, three walks and only three strikeouts in six games since returning from the injured list. He’s still striking out roughly a quarter of the time, but is starting to draw more free passes, and has also increased his hard hit percentage by almost 10 points to nearly 50 percent this season. Simply put, his plate skills are improving and he’s making more consistent hard contact when he does get aggressive, batting .302/.381/.547 with four homers and three stolen bases across 97 plate appearances this season. He won’t sustain a lofty .400 BABIP forever, but he does offer a nice blend of over-the-fence power and occasional stolen base for fantasy managers. His struggles against left-handed pitching limit his upside for the moment, but he’s still worthy of a roster spot in deeper mixed leagues as he continues to blossom into a potential everyday option for the Marlins.
Andrew Abbott, SP, Reds
Available in 75 percent of Yahoo leagues
Abbott has recorded astronomical strikeout rates in the upper minors over the last two years and has a chance to make an immediate impact for fantasy managers, thanks to his ability to consistently miss bats. The 24-year-old southpaw, who holds a pristine 2.50 ERA, 0.93 WHIP and 90/17 K/BB ratio across 54 innings (10 starts) this season between Double-A Chattanooga and Triple-A Louisville, will make his highly-anticipated major league debut on Monday evening against the division-rival Brewers at Great American Ball Park. He’s expected to receive an extended look in Cincinnati’s starting rotation and his prodigious strikeout rate gives him a chance to be fantasy-relevant right out of the gate. There may be some struggles from a run-prevention standpoint as he acclimates to life in the majors, but there should be enough whiffs to offset the risk of a total collapse from a fantasy perspective. There’s enough realistic upside here to warrant a roster spot in all fantasy formats and this week’s matchups against the Brewers and Cardinals will truly reveal whether he’s ready to excel at the highest level.
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